[Gráinne]

My dad, no stranger to hardships, always said that when you had a problem, there were two choices. If you could take action, you took it. If you couldn't act, you changed your attitude. Often, changing your attitude revealed some unthought-of action to take. He didn't cotton to whiners and moaners, including me.

When I'm having a "bad" day, I remember that day I wrote about here; standing in the kitchen of a battered women's shelter in downtown Cleveland, holding a damn bologna sandwich over my head like Scarlett in the garden, vowing that I would be fucking thankful for everything that came to me after that, good and bad. Sometimes it takes time, but I succeed more than not.

At that moment, I did not have a home. I had a job, but it was supposed to be temporary. I barely had clothes. I didn't have a degree. All these blessings and many more have come around since.

When the thoughts intrude, I've been taking them to the gym or the pool and leaving them in my sweat. That's another blessing, that while I'm well padded, everything works. Lots of folks, including several on this board, aren't as lucky.

It's not that I'm happy-happy all the time, but staying in that negativity isn't an option for me.